Monday, March 21, 2011

Bachelor Boy Series #1



Slow-Cooked Buttermilk/Kachiya Moru

Without much ado lemme put this down. two bachelors requested me for some quick and easy recipes and i'm starting a Bachelor Boy Series :) here we have cooked buttermilk which is a regular unavoidable splash on the kerala rice platters. now if you ask me isn't it easier to have it as curd or buttermilk i would say not necessarily. this tastes really good and doesn't bore you like buttermilk may after some days. plus it has a longer shelf life than buttermilk as it's cooked. i generally make it for a week and put in the refrigerator. and take out a lil each day and warm it slightly.

beaten curd-4 cups
oil-2 tsp
mustard seeds-1/2 tsp
shallots-10 nos
garlic flakes-10 nos
ginger-1/4" piece (optional)
fresh or dried chillies-2-3 cut in two
fenugreek powder-1/2 tsp
cumin powder-1/4 tsp
chilli powder-1/4 tsp
turmeric powder-1/4 tsp
sugar-2 pinch
salt-2 tsp

Add the cumin, turmeric powder and the salt and beat the curd slightly either in a grinder or with a beater OR with a spoon/fork in your hand! slice shallots, garlic and ginger (if you use) thin and break the chillies into two three pieces. wash the curry leaves and let them dry so that they wont sizzle unreasonably in the oil. get your tadka ready (mustard, shallots, garlic, ginger, chillies, curry leaves) in a plate. get the vessel to pour the cooked buttermilk also ready with a lil sugar in it. my mum says the sugar is to balance the flavours.

Add the oil. heat it up nicely and without lowering the flame splutter the mustard seeds and curry leaves. lower the flame and put the shallots, garlic, green chillies and ginger (if you're using). saute them for two mins. add the powders after turning off the gas to avoid them getting burnt. saute for a few secs. turn on the gas. ensure the flame is low and pour the beaten curd slowly and keep stirring. the trickiest part is here. this has to be slow-cooked. it takes around twenty mins. the important thing is to keep stirring; hey you cant multi task here. you fuss and turn on the flame high and the beaten curd curdles and then you call it by your liking...it wont be kachiya moru :P once you see the shallots and garlic and chillies surfacing and the curd gets really hot (twenty mins max for 4 cups curd) turn it off, pour into the vessel kept ready without delay.

Stir the moru in the vessel once in a way till it cools. store in the refrigerator or out if the weather is cool enough and have it with steamed rice and pickle (urukai)...mebbe some chicken too hehe.

You can happily do away with the ginger, shallots, chilli powder, cumin powder...these are added more for their medicinal properties than taste. but the indispensable ingredients are mustard seeds, curry leaves, fenugreek powder (it adds the distinct taste and is a health-forte; you can dry roast some fenugreek seeds and splutter these along with the mustard seeds if you cant powder them), garlic (i cant do without these darlings).


I'm linking this to Any One Can Cook Event from Ayeesha's Taste of the Pearl City.


26 comments:

Suja Manoj said...

Delicious moru curry..will make this everyday and you will never get bored...
series sounds great,will get to see quick and delicious recipes:)

A little bit of everything said...

I love buttermilk but never would have thought to make buttermilk soup.
Love all the spices and flavors you put in.
Beaten curd is the same as shaken buttermilk or is something totally different?
thanks for the recipe. looks wonderful.

Anonymous said...

Moru is one yummiest things ever of kerala cuisine. A great combination is rice and moru and kerala chicken curry, with coconunt slices and everythhing. And maybe a pappadam. what more could you ask for ;)

I couldnt do without any of the spices in moru you mentioned, though we use green chilies instead chili powder.

Like the pic, it looks like a mix between traditional and modern.

Anonymous said...

Pass this on to the bachelors :
"He said , "Son, you are a bachelor boy, And thats the way to stay, Son, you be a bachelor boy, until your dyin' day".... he he he.
Lovely pics and such an easy-peasy recipe...will surely try it out.

Anonymous said...

Hi - pls pass this on to the Bachelor boys you know ( He said; Son, you are a bachelor boy, and that the way to stay, Son, you be a bachelor boy until your dyin' day). Ha ha. Thoma, lovely pix and so easy-peasy to do. Am gonna try it sometime soon.

Lifewithspices said...

delicious n quick one..

Suchitra Vaidyaram said...

Thoma, this moru is a killer combo with rice! Lovely gorgeous presentation-

Umm Mymoonah said...

I love this spicy buttermilk, looks so yummy. Thank you for linking with Any One Can Cook :)

Medeja- CranberryJam said...

Looks nice, but with what do you eat it?

schmetterlingwords said...

Very excellently written... You have took the time to explain in detail for the bachelors.. Great effort!! Spicy moru curry looks very yummy.. :-)

Medeja- CranberryJam said...

Ok I found with what to eat it :) this dish is something unseen and unheard

s said...

love the series idea...
how have u been...will call u one of these days.
BTW ur food pics are just FAB!

Elisabeth said...

Such a beautiful, comforting, creamy and spicy dish. I would love to have a bowl of this... Yumm!

the Junkie book said...

suja: yea will never get bored...like dal for north indians, right? quick and delicious are the most difficult to find ;P thank you

roxana: thank you. is the buttermilk mentioned in many western desserts specially processed or jus beaten curd...the beaten curd reply i've given in your post.

indu: thank you. yes, my darling comb is rice, moru, fiery meen curry and cabbage thoran..some drool-spill on the keyboard haha. the last time i had fish here was end jan...eeeeeeeeeeee! waiting to hit home. mumbai meri jaan nahi hei :P

judy: the bachelor boy singer was pretty wise i guess...thanks much!

kalpana: thank you.

suchi: thank you swiss babe.

ayeesha: thank you. my pleasure and all the best with your mooooovement!

med: thank you. haha you found out the comb!

shafmuz: thank you butterfly!

sheba: don call me now..i'm soooo down. lemme reach home and re charge. not goa. ooty apparently!! trust this organization...and don you dare say wow ooty! goa would've been a break for me :(

elisabeth: thank you...i can quickly fix you one any day you visit india!

Mrs K said...

Thoma,thanks for all the lovely comments:)So you are not a daal chaval person,I gather ...;)This beaten curd recipe with all the sizziling seasonings & no fuss recipe is sure to become a keeper for the bachelor's :)and for home makers like me-Who are on the look out for some easy breezy recipes which taste equally divine !!!

Malar Gandhi said...

Beautiful plus delicious moru curry

Shabs said...

I make this almost everyday in mu house , this is the only thing that my kids and me too will have with rice , so simple yet so delicious :D

Dimah said...

Looks interesting and delicious!
Beautiful photos!

spontaneous-euphoria said...

great idea!

G Mathew George said...

Thank you for the new series!

the Junkie book said...

thank you kavitha, malar, shabs, dimah, sid and my dear dear bro!

Anoop Negi said...

Ginza, I saw the dish and I instantly got transported to Kerala on the Fast 1053 shuttle departing from Pune to cochin via Kottayam.

YOu call it Moru right and for me it defines the cuisine of Kerala in all its splendor. The delicious twangy sour and oh so chilly hot drink that provides a counter point to the ever so heavy meat dishes that Kerala has a pronounced leaning to. The moru that I used to have in my period of stay in Cochin was always made sharp.. the buttermilk being too sour. I preferred it to be not so sour and the Lady in the Kitchen thankfully was able to make it with not so sour curd. Too much of that sour Moru gave me a migraine.

Back from where I come from, at home, the moru..now let us call it matha... would be fried with mustard seeds, haldi and some greens ( not the curry leaf)and a bit of other masalas and very little onion and ginger. Remember having basmati rice, daal and matha as s staple diet throughout summer.

Husnain Ali said...

nice post
Seo sem

Husnain Ali said...

nice post
Seo sem

Husnain Ali said...

nice post
Seo sem

Neets said...

hi there..just happened to come by ure blog by chance..and am glad to be a member here! I started a blog just a lil while ago and have posted a recipe for moru kachiyathu there too..looks more or less the same, but do chk it out n let me know wat u think! Cheers!

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